Big Sky Aluminum Bottle
How about a little historical aluminum bottle trivia?
What was the first aluminum beer bottle in the USA?
Nope – it wasn’t from Anheuser-Busch. It was from Big Sky Brewing in Missoula, Montana.
Actually, Heineken has the distinction of launching the first aluminum beer bottle in the world. Big Sky Brewing was second, launching its Moose Drool ale about a week after Heineken.
Moose Drool? Talk about risky branding.
Big Sky launched its aluminum bottle in 1999. They didn’t want to use cans because of the popular perception that beers in cans were inferior. So they took the plunge and used an aluminum bottle.
According to this interesting article in Massachusetts Beverage World, the decision to go with an aluminum bottle paid off. “Pittsburgh Brewing followed Big Sky in less than a year, putting the iconic but sagging Iron City into an Aluminum Bottle. For this big, aging brewery, losing its big, aging customer base, aluminum bottles represented more than just something outdoorsy and different. They were a lifeline. “It revitalized the brand,” said Tony Ferraro, VP of sales and marketing at Pittsburgh. “That bottle is the best POS there is.”